Cost of getting in front

The professional defensive driver who wishes to pass should recognize that "that guy" exists in the real world and should be prepared to handle the problem like a professional, or else should mostly forget about passing (also like a professional). I am not sure how the issue is so surprising that it needs to be incessantly complained about. Should I spam this forum with all the complaints I can about aggressive passers? I mostly stopped taking cognizance of them long ago, because I would have to spend more time yelping about it than driving if I wanted to get and remain worked up about it.

 

Aggressive driving is pretty much any elective maneuver that ends up compromising the position of one or more other drivers, either imposing additional risks or forcing them to perform defensive countermeasures to reduce or eliminate the risk.

The purpose was (and is) to get an informed answer with regard to the topic. Anyone who wants some other explanation for how this thread has come to be is liable to end up engaged in the formulation of a conspiracy theory (not particularly crazy, just on par with some of the ones mentioned a bit earlier in this thread). However, seeing as that purpose has been subverted, at this point, I'd be in favor of locking and deleting the entire thread, because all it got was off-topic comments -- it is quite clear that this topic is quite a bit more controversial here than I expected it to be (I do have my speculations as to why it has drawn the sort of answers it has, but think it best to keep it to myself and let others speak for themselves if they so choose)

 

There is no need for subjective personal feelings to enter into the picture: Safe following distance is generally 4-7 seconds of open space (depending on speed and equipment). If you want to be objective, base determinations on what is and is not an aggressive pass on whether safe following distance is being maintained by the passer and what happens to all involved drivers' following distance when the passer gets into the passing lane and when the passer gets back over afterward.

And if there is a need to be pedantic about it, one can always cite professional guidelines, training materials, CDL exam questions, ACDA laws, etc.

 

Did the Department of Labor officially abrogate all the laws and guidelines given to steering wheel holders, order the DOT to back off on enforcement, and issue a cease and desist order to all organizations (public and private) which track and disseminate compliance information as it pertains to individual drivers?

Yes, drivers are able to estimate following distance of those in the rear. In CDL school, to train drivers on how to estimate their own following distance, they tell you to pick a fixed object somewhere out in front and count off the number of seconds it takes you to get there. This technique can also be used to estimate someone else's following distance in relation to you: Pick out a fixed object next to you as you pass it, then watch your mirror and count the number of seconds needed for the vehicle behind you to reach a position adjacent to that object. You may need to repeat this exercise a few times to get a decent intuition, as drivers behind you are free to adjust speed and position.

 

UGGGGH.

Yo. U kan count from 1 to 5 in UR head and then turn UR head to the mirror and then look a peek. But be very very careful! U might do a full SWIFT if U do not look back!